Creature comforts – exploring the UK
Whether they chirp, road or splash, discover whereabouts in the UK your favourite creatures hang out and I’ll put some appropriate accommodation together for you to match up with an incredible all-round trip.
LEMURS AT THE WELSH MOUNTAIN ZOO Conwy, North Wales You can get within metres of two species of lemurs – red-fronted and ring-tailed – who settled into their new home having arrived from Edinburgh and Belfast recently. Enter the walk-through enclosure – the first of its kind in North Wales!
PENGUINS AT ZSL LONDON ZOO Regent’s Park, London A colony of super cute Humboldt penguins are loving life at Penguin Beach – their very own South American inspired exhibit. View them in the large underwater pool, penguin nursery and chic incubation unit and pool. The feeding time spectacle shouldn’t be missed! If that isn’t enough, you can meet them too (supplement).
GORILLAS AT BRISTOL ZOO Clifton, Bristol Seven western lowland gorillas from Cameroon have set up home here. This group of endangered species includes Silverback Jock, four females and two babies. Observe them munching on specially made biscuits.
JAPANESE SPIDER CRAP AT SEA LIFE BRIGHTON Brighton, Sussex The star of the show in The Claws exhibit is the Japanese spider crab – the largest anthropod in the world its legs can reach up to 12 ft across! You’ll pinch yourself when you get up close to the predators
LIONS Africa Alive! Kessingland, Suffolk Experience the plains of the world's second largest continent as you come face to face (kind of) with the king of the jungle. See lions from the Lookout Lodge or watch them roam around in their den.
GREEN SAWFISH The Deep, Hull With 2.5 million litres of water and 87 tonnes of salt, the Endless Ocean exhibit is impressive. As well as sharks, rays and turtles, a highlight is spotting green sawfish - the only place in the UK where you can see them. The endangered species and its pals get fed during the daily dive shows at 2pm, for your information.
SHARKS Blue Planet Aquarium, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire Boasting one of Europe's largest collections of sharks, you'll spot sand tigers (the big one is 3.2 metres long!), zebra, lemon, nurse, black tips and white tips from the moving walkway through a 70-metre underwater tunnel.
ELEPHANTS Blackpool Zoo, Blackpool, Lancashire Multimillion-pound Project Elephant includes one of the UK's biggest indoor elephant facilities built across three acres of land. New this year, it houses a breeding herd of Asian elephants in their paddock plus a sanded area, bathing pool and landscaped field.
GIANT PANDA Edinburgh Zoo, Edinburgh The only giant pandas in the UK are based here, having been on loan from China for the last 10 years Female Tian Tian and male Yuang Guang wander around in separate but identical enclosures. You might see them get weighed if you're there in the morning.
OWLS Scottish Owl Centre, Whitburn, West Lothian You'd be wise to visit this country park if you're an owl n! There are more than 100 feathered friends from 40 species and it has the largest collection of trained owls in the world, from the brown wood owl to the Eurasian eagle owl; you'll have a hoot!
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If you'd like help putting together some travel plans to incorporate one or more of these fascinating places, then just contact me to get things started.
Not your cup of tea? Then let me know and I can start putting some options together which are more up your street and we can go from there.
Email: melissa.coleman@travelcounsellors.com Tel: 07738 466 670 / 01386 897 830